The Benger Solar Farm newsletter is now available to view.
Benger Tribune
Category: News
Development Approval Secured
South Energy have reached another milestone in the development process of proposed plans to build a 100MW solar farm in Benger, paving the way for the South West of WA to catch up to the other states embracing solar and reach its announced Energy Transformation Target.
The Benger Solar Farm is proposed for about 180 hectares of land just off Campbell Road about 15 kilometres out of Harvey, where the Shire Council first voted to advertise the proposal for public comment in September 2019. Subject to various conditions, the application was approved and deemed appropriate for the area on December 2nd by the Southern Joint Development Assessment Panel.
It will feature 265,000 solar panels, mounted on single-axis trackers allowing them to follow the sun, and a substation including a potential battery energy storage system, a car park and office. The energy will go into the Western Power network and wholesale electricity market and be sufficient to power approximately 35,000 homes with clean energy, the equivalent in displacing 210,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually if generated by fossil-fuels.
One of the great things about the South-West of WA is that there’s a lot of electrical transmission infrastructure so renewable projects can be integrated more easily and gives opportunity to the community for jobs in construction and ongoing maintenance.
In the meantime, South Energy continues to work with Western Power in relation to its grid connection application. Assuming that the project gains all the necessary approvals in future, South Energy intends commencing construction in late 2021, with full commercial operations to commence by the end of 2022.
Benger Solar Farm Proposal Open for Public Comment
South Energy is glad to announce that the Benger Solar Farm application has reached its next important milestone to advance the proposal to be advertised for public comment on Tuesday (27/08/19).
Following on from our Community Information Session on 4th of July 2019, local opinions, ideas and comments were considered to ensure that any concerns or impacts were addressed before the Planning Application was submitted.
The Benger Solar Farm proposal is now open for public comment until Friday, 27th of September 2019.
South Energy wish to thank everyone for the positive response and support and would welcome your comments on the proposed solar farm.
Thank You to the Community for Your Support
South Energy would like to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation to the members of the community who attended the information session on Tuesday, 4th of July 2019 at the Brunswick Town Hall. It was a very informative session, filled with delicious food, great company and we have gathered a lot of valuable feedback that will be carefully considered by the project. Thank you to all!
For those who could not attend or have any further questions, please feel free to contact us via email benger@southenergy.com.au should you wish to discuss the project in more detail.
Benger Community Information Drop-In Session 4/7/19
South Energy understands the importance of community engagement to ensure that local opinions, perspectives and ideas are heard and considered by this project.
An information session about the proposed Benger Solar Farm will be held in the first week of July. We wish to take this opportunity to share with the community our vision and would welcome your comments on the proposed solar farm.
Please feel free to join us from 3:30pm to 7:00pm on Thursday 4 July 2019 at the Brunswick Town Hall (34 Ommaney Road, Brunswick WA 6224).
Light refreshments will be provided.
Community Ideas are Welcome
Community support is a key element to the success of a large-scale project like the Frasers Solar Farm. That’s why we value any ideas and thoughts the community may have when it comes to the integration of this proposed solar farm.
We want to hear about how this new addition to your community makes you feel and answer any questions or queries you may have in the process, so please feel free to get in touch with us!